The Brookhaven leader. [volume] (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1883-1891, 1887-10-06

will IN. Ike another quotation from Prot.
HilgLrl. Speaking Of the subdivision of
farms, aud the consequent personal at
tention aud supervision Of the owners,
as necessary, he add, "aud concurrent
lv, the wage system, for that of shares,
at least So far u the negro lahOrer Is
concerned, what would he have said
of our rack-rgnt system? are condi-
tons precedent of q natural and per-
maneut possible agricultural system in
Mississippi
THE DAIRY INDUSTRY.
| promised to say something of dairy.
| ing, an industry jus, commenced in
Mississippi, and which received lis first
impetus from the A. q VI. College. We
are in the habit here, of considering cot
ton king. In one sense, and in that only,
does cotton wear the crown, and that
sense is that it is despOtic monarch,
which never gives rest to those who are
its exclusive subjects But il is no longer
king in finance. The little industry,
as we are inclined to think it, Just mem
toned, far outstrips cotton in the value
of its products The total capital in
vested in dairyiug in the United States
amounts to So, $50 100000. THREE Bill
LloEs TWO HUNDRED AND EIGHTY MIL
LIONS OF DOLLARS, or about five times
as much as the net banking capital in
the United States. The cotton crop of
last wear was about +, SOC. 600 bales, which
at S33 or 1884 per ba'e Ga high average
to the producer) would be only about
$2l6, 100000 gross, with no net profits.
The net profits OF dairying amount to
1925 $50, 900, about double tee gross
proceeds Of the cotton crop. Only
twelve thousand hands were employed
in this industry, and they received one
dollar per day. The net profits on all
this immense investment was l3i per
cent. on cotton, nothing, or next to
nothing Estimating the production of
cotton at four bales to the hand, high
estimate, we have more than 100000
hands employed, at wages--no, not wages,
for any sort of wages would have ruined
the farmer-but getting as their share
not fifty cents a day. ! get these figures
from a very able article i'll the New
York Herald of July Goth last.
Don't by any means suppose that |
recommend that everybody, at once,
shall quit raising cotton and 90 into
dairying. By no means. Sudden changes,
made in ignorance of the conditions ne
cessarv to success in the new enterprise,
are always disastrous. | merely want to
call the attention of the farmers of Mis-
sissippi, State probably the best adapt
ed of any other to dairying, to this bust
ness, so that by degrees after acquiring
full knowledge, they may reap some OF
its benefits. As | have shown, the a, "
VI College has
LED THE WAY IN THIS BUSINESS
ana it is being rapidly developed in
this State. OF all the farm business
known to us, this of iairyiug shows the
greatest results in favor of skill and in
telligence, over ignorance and I'M
thrifty methods. Denmark, where, as
you have seen, they have the best
Agricultural College in the world,
leads the world also in the price
of her butter England took from
Denmark last year 40055,60O pounds of
butter, and paid for it about $ll ,000, 600,
or IS cents per pound. She took from
Holland 35,9O1,000 pounds of butter
and paid for it $4,000 600 or about %
cents per pound. She took from the
United States only ! ,233, 600 pounds, and
paid for it only 5000 or about 10
cents per pound. So, YOU see, the best
butter has more b yrrs and brought
more per pound. Would it not be re.
lief to the never-changing mOnOtony of
barren cotton fields worn out lands,
and hard living, to have Just something
else to do that would be more pleasant
and more profitable? So let our farmers
improve their cattle by grading with
better milk and butter stock, and go Oc-
casiOnally to the A. ~ NJ. College
creamery Cor some one uearer) and learn
something of butter making. Let them
improve in their methods, and get better
butter for home consumption. And after
a while, when they and their wives and
daughters have learned to make good
butter economically, then let a cream
erv be established in the neighborhoOd,
and butter be made for shipment. All
this can be done without decreasing the
amount of cotton raised. The addition
al cattle kept will furnish the means
together with the grasses and clover,
Tor pasture and hay), for enriching the
lands, and one bale of cotton will be
raised on each acre planted. Yet, with
all this, | learn that many farmers are
opposed to the A. and NJ. College ahd
the Female Industrial Institute, because
of the
INSIGNIFICANT TAN TO SUPPORT THEM.
They assert they are sick; that things
are in a bad way; that year after
year their tot is less and less rewarded;
yet they refuse to take the necessary
steps for recovery. AS we'll might
sick man, racked with pain and fever,
decline the necessary medicine for re-
covery. Who does not know that six
weeks ago we had the most promising
cotton crop known in Mississippi for
many years? The heart of the farmer
was gladdened, his hopes were revived,
and all seemed going as "merry as a
marriage bell" All is changed now.
|